Anyone else’s home in absolute disarray right now post Christmas celebrations? We pick up and turn around, and it’s a disaster again. I didn’t count how many new items entered our home in the past three weeks, but I’m sure it’s close to 1,000. One toy we opened last night for Leon had 72 pieces alone. I’ve yet to work any hours this week, so three 12 hour shifts still need to be completed. The pressure to get the house together before returning to work tomorrow builds. I wish I could just get up and clean all day, but the reality is, I could barely get Loretta out of her seat this morning. 8 am-we left to drop Lucas off at school, came back home at 8:30 with hopes of some more cuddles and a movie, warm together in bed. Go to Loretta’s side to get her out, and had so much pain just getting her seat unbuckled. I wondered to myself if someone has invented a car seat for parents with pain? You know like maybe a key, or sensor, I don’t know but her seat is so hard for me to push. It’s easy to set a goal for myself that’s unrealistic. Like cleaning the whole house in one day, all while taking care of the kids and managing to care for myself as well. I know what my husband would tell me, just pick one thing and focus on that and that’s productive enough. He’s so sweet. I came home yesterday and he bought me a random gift, a beautiful copper bracelet supposed to help with pain and arthritis and a wax machine for my hands to try. Bless his heart, how thoughtful right!? So maybe today, instead of setting myself up to fail with goals that I can’t meet and my body would appreciate a more realistic goal of maybe picking up my bedroom, changing over laundry, and a much needed chore of cleaning out the fridge? Wish me luck.

Praying today, through the overwhelming clutter of new things in our homes, we can take a moment to be grateful. Grateful for the new toys, grateful for the pain (at least I have hands to hurt right), and pause and remember it won’t be this way forever and to cherish it.

While also giving grace, being a full time working mom is hard.

xoxo,

Kiersten